


Sicut Pollicitus Est

by KizayaTaishuro



Category: Elsword (Video Game)
Genre: Action, Adventure, Fantasy, Gen, OC, Rewrite of an old fiction, will add more tags if necessary
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-01-15
Updated: 2017-05-07
Packaged: 2018-09-17 16:12:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 9,873
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9332909
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KizayaTaishuro/pseuds/KizayaTaishuro
Summary: Three hundred centuries, three long hundred years, all spent in a long slumber. He woke up with dried and forgotten tears, and a promise left unfulfilled. His name is a wilted flower from a promise long made ago, a name that has been stained and no longer exists. Sicut Pollicitus Est. As Promised. ...brother.





	1. Booting Up

**Author's Note:**

> Hello, Kizaya Taishuro here. Hope you enjoy this fan fiction I made for the Elsword Community. The main character of this story is Subtract, being almost a polar opposite to Add (Haha, I wish--), and I hope you stick with his journey until the end. :)

"I want you two to promise no matter what happens, you'll stay together and live a life you'll both be proud of. It's all I could want for you two, to live free and be happy forever."

The two linked their pinkies together, smiling among the flowers grown by their mother.

"I promise, we'll always be together and be happy. So please, don't worry about us. It will be a promise that can't be broken."

.

.

.

Initiating booting sequence . . .

Depressurizing pod . . .

Initiating reviving sequence . . .

Sequence_01 and _02 complete . . .

Disconnecting life support system . . .

Stasis discontinuing . . .

Revival complete . . .

Pod_Carna_Grenore opened . . .

. . . Welcome back to the living . . .

The boy opened his eyes to a golden light. It was warm and blurry still, and it made him think, "did I die?" He blinked a couple of times, tears that fell before he was put into a deep slumber trickled down.

There was a heavy feeling weighing down on him as he looked around, head turning slowly. He couldn't move his body yet, his limbs sluggish and body temperature still cold. Despite the sleep inertia, there was a sense of unnatural tranquillity. The boy named, Carna, did not remember anything for the first hour.

Soon, a transparent screen with blue text appeared in front of his face. It read:

"Welcome back, Carna Grenore, to the Nasod Preservation Chamber located in Elianode and connected to the Northern Region of Lurensia, Elrios. You have admitted to the Nasod Preservation Chamber approximately three hundred years ago and have been in cryo stasis for three hundred years. You may feel a heavy sense of inertia and cannot move your body. Please do not panic as your body is still stabilising and adjusting to reality.

"You may move soon and are requested to perform the following exercises for rehabilitation. After an hour, you will regain further cognitive functions and will be required to rest. Returning to the living can be difficult for your mainly human components, so it is recommended you take things slowly. Thank you for reading this notice and good luck."

The notice stayed there long enough for him to read it all before it automatically disappeared.

It was hard to walk the first few times. There were a few Nasods to help him walk and pick him up when he fell, but he soon got the hang of walking. It didn't take long for him to go through obstacle courses before he was guided to the resting room. To the resting room where a headache that persisted for the last hour got worse.

Waking up in a strange place like this and without memories, it made him feel like a big chunk of himself was lost somewhere. His head met the cold ground beneath as his vision shook in all different directions. The pain was nothing new, he felt. He wanted to remember, the missing parts that drifted away in slumber…

* * *

 

"You can't do this!" Her hand pulled him along without ease. "I can't leave yet! Not when my older brother is still out there!"

She typed a few numbers on a small panel and the entrance shut tight behind them, bolts drilling in and steam gushing out. The tunnel was dimly lit to conserve power. It was necessary.

"Carna, listen to me." She knelt to his height, dress flowing onto the ground. Her warm-coloured eyes stared sympathetically at his, like a mother trying to comfort her crying child. "We don't have a choice in this. If we tried to escape from the forest, they would hunt us down mercilessly. Even if we did manage to escape, everyone in Elrios knows what we look like. We won't be safe anywhere."

"So we're...fugitives?"

She pressed her lips together for a second and continued to lead him down the tunnel.

"Please understand. This is for your own safety."

"But...you'll die."

"If I die to protect you, then I'm satisfied."

"I don't want you to do this! Don't leave me alone…"

They arrived in the chamber where the Preservation Pod was. She strapped him in and configured the settings.

"When Adam wakes up again, he will send a signal to automatically repower this place and you will also wake up. You'll be fine."

"Don't you say that when you're knocking on death's door in front of me." She smiled again, her golden-pink eyes gazing sadly. Her finger upon a blue button when she was strapped into another device.

"Goodnight, Carna. It was nice spending time with you and I hope...you can find happiness without me."

Liquid sorrow overcame him in waves as it rolled its way down his warm cheeks. She pressed the button and watched him as his eyelids gradually fluttered shut before she let out her last breath.

* * *

 

There was a small puddle of tears cuddling beneath his face. Yes, he remembered her. The memory of being alone, followed by the darkness that always crept over his shoulder. She was just walking amongst the greenery, the rocks that jutted out, the small streams splashing, small creatures scuttling away with branches cracking underneath. He remembered lying there, set against a tree barely dry. Wheeze, cough, wheeze. That caught her attention, then. Hair billowing around her shoulders with eyes blinking a rosy pink in his direction. A power covered in warmth circled around her in a calm frenzy, breathing through the air that quivered ever so slightly.

She had been a series of constantly saving him. Constantly wrapping clean bandages around the wounds he sustained from living 'out there'.

The cryostasis must have caused a temporary memory loss and then he understood. "Returning to the living can be difficult for your mainly human components" was what the notice had read. He knew he was still missing chunks of his memory. It was hard to miss the empty hole etched inside your head, the heavyweight pressed against it.

He helped himself up, only to feel soft grass underneath his feet.

"Huh?"

"Your stay at the Nasod Preservation Chamber has expired. A message and a gift had been saved for your departure." Another blue screen with cursive writing appeared, floating perfectly at his height.

"Greetings, Carna, I have read your file that Princess Apple previously sent. It is unfortunate to hear of your situation and what you have been through. Although, by the time you awake, I would've returned to sleep as well, so I have left a gift that will arrive soon. Carna, I have no doubt that you will arrive here soon and it is rather saddening that I might never get to meet you. You were the best friend she ever had since her home in Elrios fell and her wish was to see you fulfil your promise. Do her proud, Carna, and keep yourself hidden well. They are searching for you, the ones who cloak themselves in the darkness will have no doubt been sweeping Elrios for you. So I advise you not to keep your name and keep what's within locked inside."

He frowned, but there had been a knotting feeling in his stomach for quite some time now. Twisting and tightening, coiling in the depth of his stomach like a snake. The feeling of dread was familiar as if he spent time all alone with dread itching to choke him. The heart would thud, thud, thud. A black snake slithering its way up and into the throat, flickering its tongue and hissing. Hissing in the surroundings he stood in as the blue screen glitch and disappeared. Something was coming towards him and he wanted to believe it was what the message mentioned. A crack rustled in the trees behind him, a patter thundered through in the bushes, a distant cry shook the air, the sounds of the forest groaning all around him. He had twisted around, but nothing would present itself.

Whirr, crack, crash, snicker… It was getting closer.

"Are you Carna Grenore?"

"Wah!" He fell to see a looming shadow behind him. Turning around, it was a humanoid looking robot. "You're…"

"I have been sent to help you prepare for your journey," it said. "You may choose your attire, create your weapon system and appearances. You must also provide the following: a new identity."

Carna just stared at the Nasod before asking, "Do you have a name?"

"..."

"You don't have a name?" He stood up, noticing just how tall the Nasod was. At his current height, he was at the chest. The humanoid Nasod surrounded Carna with multiple blue screens, circling around him in a slow pace. It guided him through the processes of creating a new identity and appearance.

He decided on his clothes carefully, using different pattern work to figure out what he liked. A white jacket with a darkened coat of black from the waist to hip, a golden zip line diagonally to the side, with a simple black and white pattern attached. A white belt with a dark blue line running around the middle, it carried a decorative clock on the side. It seemed that the Nasod held many materials gathered from around the world and strange technological objects he was unfamiliar with.

"That person got me all this?" he said, astounded. "Who is this person…? Will I meet him soon?"

"If you begin your journey, you will meet him. Now create your weapon system."

At first, he thought he would have to use weapons that would allow him to use mana. Undergoing a body scan, there were traces of mana around him and inside, but...there was a separate type of energy. In Elrios, El was what gave life to the land and people could harness its power to live better. But before the El ever existed, Elrios was the Forsaken Continent that only gave birth to Darkness and Chaos. The energy back then was powerful and reckless, reigning death and destruction to any surviving life forms. It had no name, but even in the time of El, there were a people who believed in that power. To bring back that Forsaken Continent.

Carna wasn't completely aware of that, but that the separate energy within him was explosive and massive in quantity. If he could utilise this energy well, he could be independent of both the El and Mana altogether. It was an energy he felt he could control, given enough time to practice. With several hours in the forest clearing, he created vessel drones that could be inserted with energy. However, giving them equal amounts of energy was too difficult. So, he tried recreating the vessel drones again.

"You will not last long without eating, Carna. Having been only sustained by a life support system, your body has become weaker. Should I go into the nearest town to get you food?"

"Operator…" he said sleepily. He had named the Nasod after a component he took interest in. "Sounds good."

Operator left into the forest, leaving Carna alone with the many types of Nasod machinery from the storage. Light radiated from lamps, which was powered by El.

"What if I created a switching mechanism?" He mused. Carna had become familiar with the machinery and materials he found. It felt like he had known them for a long time, yet his memories did not recall ever seeing them. "The barrier device looks good enough, but it's too big."

He shivered, the night's chilly air breathing into his newly made clothes. The lights provided some warmth and he began to worry monsters were lurking in the forest. An hour had passed by, nothing had approached him.

"I suggest using the Energy Switching blueprint." He was too tired to act surprised and saw Operator approaching with food in his arms. "I managed to secure some food from a supply cart."

"You...stole food?"

"I am not bound to human morality. I'm here to help you prepare." The Operator gave him several pieces of fruit with a bottle of water. They were placed on a floating desk surface and he randomly selected a red-looking fruit. It wasn't an apple, but it tasted sweet when he bit into it. The Operator watched him eat before assisting him with creating a weapon. Eventually, they managed to make six Vessel Drones paired with three Shift Drones. Carna barely slept as the sun started to rise. He barely minded the frosty cold of the morning when his weapons were complete.

"You express remarkable understanding of the machinery."

Carna watched his drones fly around him.

"Well, you helped me create them in one night," he laughed. "Thank you, Operator."

"I do not require thanks, but I must ask...you also created an AI Socket for a Core. Why is that?"

"Ah, that?" He looked at the spherical empty socket before his drones paired up, synchronising. One system comprised of two Vessel Drones and one Shift Drone. "Just to create some room for improvement."

The drones went in triangular formations before dispersing a transparent field. Two thin holographic fields atop each other. Carna carefully swiped two fingers across the field, sending a rippling trace to the side.

Operator let out a sound akin to shock when he was split in half before its blue eyes flickered off. It fell with a loud crash, bolts and metallic pieces tumbling away. Carna just looked before plucking the Nasod Core from the remains, cloudy blue. He pressed the core into the Core AI Socket and reprogrammed the Core for a few minutes.

"Hello, Operator," he said. The core flushed to life like it was alive. He picked it up and threw it in the holographic field. It entered through, being registered as a Core before disappearing. "You won't remember who you were and what you came for."

He stored the equipment and threw the storage cube into the field, too. "Let's see...three triplet weapons. I'll give them each a name."

There was a sense of guilt slowly coming over him since he didn't know why he cut Operator down. When he was creating his weapons alongside the humanoid Nasod, he felt like someone suddenly changed his view and he had started making the Socket. Why was it now that he realised that? He wasn't in complete control. It was like someone was pulling his strings, dancing him around and yanking him towards a different path.

"...what did I just do?" Guilt felt like the heart was being pulled down, the mind plunging and the realisation coming in waves. He sighed, knowing that he was alone now. Where exactly was he supposed to go?

* * *

 

The sun was at a fair distance in the sky as he travelled to a nearby town. A brown wooden plaque gave the identity of the town, "Elder". There were guards stationed at the gate, eyeing him cautiously as they stood still. Carna walked through the entrance, feet stepping on white concrete as his drones followed behind. People rarely wandered around the town without any purpose, but several men and women walked downcast on the streets. Torn posters decorated several walls, once promoting the tyrant of a mayor. The scenery laid out before him was familiar. Children sitting against the walls, holding their toys in hand. Parents huddling behind their doors with sobbing noises emanating from within.

It was strange. One would expect a bright town like this to be bustling with life as their tyrannical mayor was deceased. Carna sighed to himself as he neared the main court, following the signs to Wally's Memorial Bridge. An Alchemist was unloading her supplies for today and started setting up her cauldron. She was consuming a lollipop, which she took out shortly. Having a knowledgeable aura around her, he thought about asking her what was wrong with the town.

"Hey," he greeted.

The alchemist raised her head and her eyes widened in surprise, "Suru suru…? Do Echo's eyes deceive her?"

He frowned slightly.

"You look just like someone who was here a few days ago, suru…," she said. "Are you perhaps related to Add?"

"Who?" he responded but had a sneaking realisation. "What did he look like?"

"He had white hair and magenta eyes," she answered. "You also have...the same eyes."

He wanted to ask more questions but stopped himself. How would he have known someone like that-was there a promise? The scent of flowers permeated the air, sweet and aromatic. A promise?

"S-suru? Are you okay?" questioned the alchemist, but it didn't register. A lady with flowing white hair, glowing silvery in the sunlight streaming through clean glass. He couldn't hear her voice even when she opened her mouth to speak. Someone else was in front of him, holding out a pinky finger. A child with the same hair colour as the lady who always seemed to smile. Why couldn't he hear the voices of both of them? His own biological mother and his own older brother.

"I'm...alright," he managed to respond. Carna was hunched over and the Alchemist looked concerned.

"Are you his younger brother, or something? He once mentioned you in his sleep," she said. "Although, when I mentioned this, he got angry and left."

"I understand. Did you say your name was Echo?" He asked politely.

"Suru suru, Echo alright," she said, nodding. "What's your name?"

He couldn't say he was Carna according to the mysterious messenger, so he thought of something hurriedly.

"Sub... Subtract!" He said rather loudly, standing straight.

Echo blinked a couple of times in surprise before letting out a soft giggle, "The opposite of his name, huh? Well, Echo can't point you in the direction he went but your best bet is Bethma."

"Bethma?"

"It's a desert area inhabited by both lizard men and humans. Bethma is the neighbour town next to Elder, suru. If one wants to advance forward, Bethma is an ideal place to go to, suru."

Subtract thought about his options and offered Echo a fake-placed smile. Somewhat remembering to be polite to people you just met. The empty feeling of faking was only a drop, but noticeable when he did the act. Echo tilted her head to the right, almost as if confused about something.

"You seem different from him. You're actually pretty nice and polite," she pointed out. "Alright, I'll answer any question you have. Only one, suru."

"What's wrong with this town? It seems gloomy for a bright-looking town."

"Ah, you don't know about the HoD? It's a mysterious group that popped out of nowhere and has been terrorising many towns, suru. They've managed to cast this ominous presence over towns they are going to invade next, suru, so with that indication... Elder will be invaded by them soon. The Velder Army has tried taking them down and liberating every town they've taken, but none of them has succeeded, suru. Now only if the El Search Party could solve this, but I think they're all the way up in Altera."

"HoD…" It felt like an old scar starting to open up. He knew who they were, but he couldn't get the words out of his mouth. No, he didn't know who they were, he knew what they were. Maybe he would encounter them on the way to Bethma. If this was a possibility, he would have to prepare himself. "Do you know where they're going to come from?"

She frowned, "Oh, I see the problem now, suru. They're coming from Bethma so it's likely …"

"Invaded and taken over…" he finished for her. This was certainly bad news for the first day of his arrival. Echo pursed her lips before looking at Subtract's drones, which she had been doing for a couple times. The nine floating drones were minimal so they didn't take up much space behind him. They floated rather silently without any noise, having non-existent engines and being sustained only by spatial technology and energy. His energy was largely versatile in functioning. "I'll still go."

"Your drones...can I see them?" asked Echo. Subtract beckoned the drones closer as they whirled around Echo. One Vessel Drone and Shift Drone landed in Echo's hands, circling around on her palms before becoming still. "This energy you're using to power them is unfamiliar, but the mechanical parts are a bit out of alignment. Look, if you're planning to face a part of that group, you're going to need to be optimal for fighting them. I'll help you modify them with some parts from the Castle."

"The Castle?"

Echo pointed in the direction of a towering white castle.

"There are still remnants of our tyrant mayor in there. It may be a bit dangerous."

"I'll go then. Don't worry about me."

Echo smiled. "I'll go get my detector nasod to help guide you."

"Thank you much, Echo."

"It's not much. I just like technology."

In a space of turquoise shards and blue, someone stood afar watching through a blurry-edged screen. Although he had something else to do and vastly important than watching someone unrelated to his goal, he got an ominously bad feeling. An evil presence walked among the lands of Elrios and that presence existed now in Elder. He made a frustrated sound, whispering, "You should have never existed here."


	2. Corrupted Code

Subtract was beginning to discover more of what he was capable of. His feet floated off the ground as he followed after the Nasod that scuttled along. Flying felt as easy as applying oneself forward to go in a certain direction, tilting this way and that. If he wanted to stop flying, he could will himself to land on the ground. His dark energy that radiated through allowed him control of this ability.

Guards were becoming visible in the distance, which made the Nasod Scout stop and wait. Subtract flew ahead with his weapons circling in front of him. This would be his first time in battle, but something splurged in his left eye socket. A momentary disgust at the squelch inside his eye made him cringe. His view altered, analysing the guard's weapons and openings. He had no time to wonder what happened to his eye as swords were swinging heavily at him.

The guards saw him flying towards them as they pulled up their weapons, ready to whack it at him. He dodged the first few blows and heard their surprise.

"He's fucking flying?" they swore. "What kinda-"

He swiped a finger across the Input Field, cutting down on them with accuracy. Their openings were crystal clear as they swirled around, glowing at the weak points. An unsuspected blow was surging at him, caught by the drones' field. His weapon blocked blows by disconnecting the Output field, allowing the blow to be absorbed by its Input. In an instant, the Output would rise up and throw back the blow.

"Gargh!" They cried out, falling one by one. Guards would panic at the blood flowing forth from their wounds, armour sliced by the impacts Subtract delivered. He continued flying forward with the Nasod Scout making its way through the falling bodies. Guards would flee and some would stay and fight. Attacks filled with dark energy were splitting armours, running across metal and punching through snipers. Snipers that would aim their crossbows from higher platforms as they shot at him. He could kick, or punch, his weapon's field to generate a projectile. The harder, the further and the softer, the closer.

* * *

The inner walls of the castle were quite lavish, carpeted by blue rolls of tapestry. Statues of a long gone tyrant lined the walls with paintings showing his many poses. The paintings themselves weren't well done, but Subtract could make out a man with a moustache. He followed the Scout further and further into the castle were rarely any guards. The morning was still clutching on the edges of the windows, peeking in like a giant. There were stairs leading under the castle where Nasod parts were stored. He gathered what the Scout signalled to get and placed them into his storage.

Returning was an easier task than invading the castle itself and he met up with Echo waiting. She already had tools spread out across her table, ready to work.

"Glad to see you're in one piece, Subtract," said Echo. "Now, those materials your drones are made out of are pretty rare, but luckily our tyrant collected 'rare' materials."

Subtract and Echo worked together for several days, building more drones

In the end of them working together, a sharp pain stabbed through his stomach. It felt like a knife wedged between bones and being shot at with a definite amount of bullets. He doubled over at the pain that appeared without warning.

"Suru…? What is wrong, Subtract?" questioned Echo worriedly. The pain was searing through his flesh as if the knife was searing through. He pulled up his shirt to find a cube etched into his stomach. It looked newly embedded as if someone had rammed it in and the skin around started pulsating painfully. Veins looked like they were trying to escape from it, being pulled into the edges of the cube. The cube itself appeared black with turquoise patterns stretching out from the central circular point. The shock wasn't enough to describe the multitude of emotions he felt all at once.

"T-that's…" He heard Echo stumbling backwards from her chair, eyes widening at the familiar cube stuck in his stomach. "It looks...like Glaive's cubes, suru…"

He remembered. No, it wasn't Glaive's. Those cubes didn't originally belong to him but to a greater being that punished him. A being of darkness that once roamed the land and placed its fingers around every living thing. Nonetheless, it was immensely painful and he had no idea how it got there. The pain burned and pierced deeper, unable to stop. It felt like it stabbed even deeper than his own body and continued never ending.

"The energy from that cube…" started Echo. Subtract looked up at Echo was coming closer, pulling down her goggles to take a good look. The turquoise patterns of the cube pulsated within her sight, gradually pulling her close but keeping her at the same distance. Dark memories were surfacing within her mind and slowly infecting her with voices. It was like an open boiling pot of murky waters, pulling people in with a sweet scent that would entice the darker crevasses of the mind. With that boiling pot, steam would gush out to greet whoever would pull close before the lid itself shut the contents back into anonymity. Subtract had pulled his shirt back down, hiding the cube from sight.

"I don't think this cube belongs to even Glaive…" Echo didn't know what to say, but she knew she had lost herself for a second. Seeing something as unknown as that was like looking into the abyss and when you stare into the abyss, it stared back at you. Peered at you before you knew you stepped over the edge and plunged right into it. "Does it hurt, suru?"

"It feels... sharp like the edges are jabbing into my organ, but I don't feel anything else other than that," he answered. "I think this cube belongs to something very dangerous and not of this world."

"Suru...the only existence you are describing would be Henir, suru...but I have no idea how you would attain that cube. You should talk to Glaive, suru, but even I don't recommend that. He's shady, suru, and these days he is involved with HoD itself. It's strange, suru, he once helped the Elgang who helped many people…" She shook her head and pulled up her goggles. "I don't know how to help you with this, but your weapons are complete. It's a simple mechanism that's quick to produce, but the energy you use makes it even better. You should probably get going before it gets late."

She wanted to get rid of Subtract pretty fast as she didn't have the desire to lay eyes on that cube again. Something about it just radiated bad news. He heard the tone of her voice and just about anyone could tell it said, "Leave and never come back". Why were those words familiar? A flash of an older memory, conglomerated with other memories came flashing by. He was much younger in a house of harsh sounds and harsh hitting. The man was older and his eyes never strayed from his goal, but through this, he saw nothing else. Not the two sons who were suffering from his abuse, from his never-ending tirade. He was Subtract's father and still the father who sent him away, never wanting him to come back. With all the bitterness the man could muster, all the neglection seemed clear. Subtract wasn't wanted in Elder as well, it seemed. But he didn't see this memory clearly. Not even as Echo ushered him out and closed the door, he saw only...painful recollections of being small and being hit for no reason at all. Was it his mother, or his father, or someone else entirely?

* * *

The clouds had gathered closely enough to appear foreboding, spitting rain from above. He wasn't sure he should cross paths with HoD even if he was strong enough to take them down. Those cloaked in darkness sweeping over Elrios would surely be the HoD, which was why Subtract started taking a separate route. He would leave Elder to be invaded, but the town itself looked like it already gave up. Not that going to Bethma would help alleviate his caution. Bethma was already taken over by the HoD and he would surely bump into them. If he wanted to continue to the end of his journey-wherever that was-he would have to avoid Bethma and abandon his search for Add, but did he have that choice? He had lost everything-no, he was certain he needed to fulfil his promise. Subtract jumped slightly into the air, exerting his energy to his legs. Flying would make the journey faster.

Colossal structures of sand surrounded the town as said by Echo. Subtract didn't meet anyone suspicious on the way here, but he did encounter monsters that strangely ignored him. It was like they were, too, affected by the clouds. Once, a golden sun graced the town of Bethma with dry gusts to blow through the rocky valleys. But now, the town was blanketed in darkness. Subtract landed atop a short structure of stone, looking down at the small town of the desert. Livid monsters roamed through its sandy streets, walking on all fours. Even when he came near, the monsters only looked at him with timid eyes before scattering away. What...happened to this town? No one was around and there were only ebony-skinned creatures spotting glances at him. The only sitting creature had dark brown hair with a greyish tint. It stood watch over the town with golden brown eyes.

He approached the creature who stared in alarm, cracking its head at him. Its face was flattened with a thin line glowing turquoise.

"You...why do you look normal?" it asked in a rough voice, reminding him of rocks snapping together.

"What happened to this town?" he responded with a question. It was sitting on a veranda with its arms crossed.

"It was taken over by the Hand of Darkness, the organisation that has erupted from nowhere. Although, they've probably been around for some time," it answered. "My name is Stella, Bethma's Head of Security…or was, before I was turned into this. You don't know about any of this?"

Subtract sat beside her with his drones following behind and shook his head.

"Well, you're a clueless traveller for one, and maybe stupid for coming to this infested town. Yes, all the creatures here used to be human before HoD came. We only saw the bad weather as an indication, but we never really saw them coming. My guess was that they subdued the lizard men race before shooting through the rocky valleys as a hiding advantage. They just...appeared like clouds. Shooting into this town with strange magic before turning each and every one of us into monsters. No one could fight back or even resist. They covered little Martha in a black cloud before she... El, all the children were turned first and they…" She seemed to struggle to talk as her voice shook with emotion. "Their parents would run to them in a heartbeat preceding their deaths. The children lost control of themselves and ...they just ripped into their parents, tearing at their flesh and devouring them. We had to kill them after that before they ate anyone else."

The pain was apparent. Even for a strong woman like her, breaking was imminent.

"And soon, we shall join them."

"Join them?"

She scoffed. "It is only a matter of time before everyone else loses their minds. Chacha Buch was already killed for going berserk first."

"Is there anything I can do to save this village? I'm looking for someone and he might be here."

Stella looked at him with a quiet gaze. "Who?"

"He calls himself, 'Add'."

"Ah... I met him once. He was following the Elgang, but he said he was going to Altera. He went before HoD arrived so he should be safe."

"He's my older brother."

"You look like him, but I would never have guessed he had a younger brother."

"I'll go to Altera after helping you. None of you should have to die like this."

"I appreciate that but there's no more airships here to take you to Altera. If you still want to help us with that in mind, you should eradicate the HoD that has blocked the way between Bethma and Feita. We checked there and there's a small group guarding that place. I'll ready a message you can deliver to Feita who can save us from this plight."

"I'll do just that."

"You're just as generous as the Elgang, huh? Well, I haven't seen how you attack so I don't know if you can defend yourself…"

"Don't worry about that. Tell me where to go and I'll take them down."

Stella pursed her rocky lips, crushing together rough edges in thought. There were cracks in her dark skin, revealing turquoise innards. "Alright then. I'll tell you where they are, but you take care of yourself."

And when he went, he saw something shiny by her side for a moment.

* * *

Subtract flew to where she described, taking caution of his surroundings. The desert structures crowded around the sandy pathway, looming over like gigantic sentries. They looked forlorn underneath the murky sky, always awaiting the next living thing to pass on their way. He could spot black clouds gliding underneath him, swirling and circling around each other. Their energy permeated through the air, shooting through their rugged ways into corrupted particles. There was pollution happening below and living plants that once stood there were yellowed and brown.

He breathed in the cold air, his nostrils stinging, and exhaled.

His drones circled around. One Shift Drone and two Vessel Drones formed a triangle (which Subtract named Coetum) and around him formed two more Coetus. "Here goes…" The disgusting feel of his eyes squelching, eyes changing again.

"Realitas," he said in a clear tone. One of his Coetum disappeared in on itself and formed a large field underneath the HoD, trapping dark clouds within an absorbent field. They were stripped of their dark clouds, revealing people donned in black cloaks. With no time to react, the field charged up with stolen energy before being blasted upwards in a hazy puff. Subtract watched the puffy smoke rise up before slowly descending into the area. "Area cleared…"

"An energy field the absorbs even ours," came a rough whisper. The voice was ragged and worn from abuse, slithering on like an old relic from battles long lost. "How mysterious. Now our forms are gone."

Subtract looked around himself, whipping his head around to refocus his attention into the smog that was being blown away. No one was there-how could no one be there? There were people wearing black cloaks moments ago, yet his eyes did not find anything resembling black except shadows. Shadows from desert structures, towering over him. His eyes would survey his surroundings to find the entrance to Feita clear. The downwards path leading down to darker ones, but that was all that was left.

"Here I am." He felt a searing pain slashing through his shoulder, making him yelp in pain. As if the stabbing pain ramming itself further into his stomach wasn't enough. "Haargh!" Gooey globs of red liquid oozed out onto his white clothes, staining it in vivid red. It spewed out over the ground and continued squirting out even when he covered his own wound. The searing sharp pain sliced through his shoulder blade when he frantically looked around, forcing his body to move despite the pain. Every jostle sent ripples through his shoulder, making him grimace. It felt like a metal claw was pinching his wound tightly, but deeper and worse. Something incredibly sharp had slashed through the flesh.

"You are an inexperienced fool." A dark cloaked man appeared several metres away, enveloped in a cloudy presence. "But I guess, I'll give you some of my time. One whose eyes are turquoise."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that'll be the end of the second chapter~! If you like this fan fiction so far, please leave a kudo/comment/bookmark, or anything of the like.


	3. Error

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tfw the author doesn't update in weeks-DISCLAIMER: I do not own Elsword, or make money off of them.

Chapter 3 - Error

 

He was sure these were the people he wasn’t supposed to associate with.  _ Those who cloak themselves in darkness. _ He wasn’t supposed to be here. Clearly, he could’ve flown an alternative route and he would’ve left the village to rot. That never not crossed his mind before on his way here. The cloaked man didn’t have a face to show when it was covered by a hood. Subtract prepared himself for what might be a difficult fight. But the man didn’t move.

On the other hand, he kept his hand on his bleeding wound and felt it becoming wet with sanguine fluid. Slippery to the touch. Surprisingly, he was bleeding a lot more than he thought.  
                  “Does it hurt?”  
He looked up to see the man with his eyes widening. _Huh?_ The man chuckled to himself, making the situation even more confusing. The man started to laugh louder and louder, his twisted laugh alternating between a cackle and a bray. 

“You really just came to us, didn’t you?”  
“What are you talking about?” questioned Subtract, his drones in high alert.  
The man did not answer him but turned to leave. _Not so--_ “Not so fast, you think? Not until you answer some questions, hm?”   
Subtract froze in place, his drones having the same reaction. They stopped in the air with slight movement as to accompany their functionality. Disconcerting--no, it was more than that. It was like his mind took a step back and realisation hit him square in the brain. He felt his heart drop with small noises in his ears as if his whole skull moved back when he had stepped once. He thought about it. Couldn’t it have been a lucky guess?  
“Young minds are the easiest to read. Anyways, you should return to that village…” His form was turning formless. “...it’s about time for it to crumble into sand.”

He stayed silent as the man’s form finally disappeared into the air and the unpleasant presence departed right after. Allowing himself a pained breath, he clutched his wound worriedly. When he examined it closer, it was a clean cut spreading across his shoulder. Anxious about what the man said about the village and needing first aid, he flew back as quickly as he could.

* * *

 

The village was just as he left it, if not gloomier. The monstrous figures of people barely moved from their stationary spots, black ragged skin crushing against each other when they repositioned themselves. A stale breath had stolen the place and he found it hard to move expeditiously. He observed the people he passed by and noticed that their eyes seemed hostile. Growling noises emanated from the people around him, making him hurry with caution. Stella was still in the same spot as she was last time and at her side was a letter, torn and scribbled on. Her eyes were downcast, a dull gold as she heaved air into her lungs. It appeared to him that she was struggling for a sense of control. Approaching cautiously, he gained her attention as soon as he was in near sight.  
“You’re back,” she said.  
“I’ve taken care of the pathway, but…” he faltered.

“You’re wounded...I shouldn’t have sent you alone.”

“I managed to take care of them--but the note, you ripped it?”  
She threw him a health potion, red and aqueous in nature. He caught it with one hand and stared at it curiously, not knowing what it was.

“It’s a health potion. Your wound will heal if you drink from it.”

_ A miraculous drink of some sort? _ He thought to himself. Nevertheless, he popped it open with little difficulty and drank from it. The sharp pain in his shoulder diminished as the wound zipped itself up, only the blood remained as it slowly dried. He was amazed but tried not to show it on his face. After all, Apple did tell him that the year he would wake up would be a year far in the future. Or at least, that was what she said while rushing him inside the underground chamber. Before the entrance closed for three hundred years. He still didn’t have an exact date of time, nor did he know how his older brother managed to make it to this time period.

“There’s no use in sending the message.” Her tone solemn. 

“No use?” He coldly regretted clearing the pathway but dismissed the emotion. He should be merciful and kind to those suffering...wasn’t that who he was? Sometimes it felt like he was watching his internal workings hinting at emotions that didn’t belong to him.  
“None of us will make it in time...we’re already starting to lose control as a town. Toma, the blacksmith, has already ripped his own throat out when he was about to lose control.”

“You can’t just lose hope like this.”

Something resembling a chuckle escaped her throat as she looked at him with her dull eyes. “We’ve already hoped enough, traveller. I can feel my control loosening with each second and with each passing second, I can feel the strong urge to kill those in my sight. To rampage and thirst for blood, I can feel it crawling its way inside of me. Toma was brave...brave enough to do that to himself…”

“And there’s nothing I can do?”

“No, I recommend you should get out of this town and make your way elsewhere. I’m sorry for sending you on that risky mission and that you got injured, but let us handle our own situation from here on out.”  
_It’s such a waste,_ he thought.  
“You should go now,” she urged, pulling out something eye-catching. It was a grenade and a powerful one at that. Subtract pulled away at the sight when she gave him a hostile look. “There’s around a minute until these bombs are set off by our own hand. Go.”  
Her words were final with a forceful tone riding behind them. Without waiting for another second, he began to fly away. He felt heat bursting up behind him a minute later before a brutal wind blasted forth at him.

“Aaaagh!” He let out a cry, feeling the intensity of heat stabbing into his back. It blew him off trajectory path before whacking him into a wall. An intense ball of pain mounted into his head, spreading through and dispersing his vision. The consequential moments of forgetfulness tumbled into the ground he landed on.

His decelerating energy to point zero stopped him from becoming a splatter of bodily organs and gloopy liquid. He turned, rolling from one side to the next with pain similar to a sledgehammer hammering down in his head. It pounded, pounded,  _ pounded. _  Colours of yellow, red and orange, danced like mad men with bursts of white blowing to kingdom come. The sounds came through distorted, a sickening melody of languid shapes. 

Black shadows twisted and waved, growing smaller and smaller until they could no longer be seen. Comprehension and understanding were thrown out of the window, and all he could do was watch. 

Two footsteps. Two feet rushed towards him. At first, the words were gibberish and too complex to understand. Then, the words finally tuned into some strange understanding, “Himmat! Wake up! They...attacking! The Behemoth must be sea--” The coarse voice died out, replaced by a beast roaring. 

“Jayesh...wish you never born. You and Himmat are...curse to our tribe!”

His head hurt for two new reasons--other than the consistent pounding--his head would ache from close up screaming and feeling like hair was being torn from his scalp.  _ What are you waiting for? _ He thought. No longer taking in the strangeness of the situation.  _ I don't even remember who I really am. _ Subtract, as far as he knew, just wanted answers.  _ Brother...if you're really out there. Please...just tell me why I made that promise. _

* * *

  
  


Desperation. The feeling of the heart rising, breath quickening and mind pleading. Pleading to be saved, to be set free of the darkness. To be bathed in the light that created his reason to exist. He knew he was losing his sanity and that the darkness was encroaching on him, and so he pleaded.

“Lady Ishmael! Please, answer me! Please!” But his pleas were unheard and nothing befell him of his desperation. His sanity wouldn't last. He was losing himself fast, slipping on the ride to damnation. His left arm was no longer the same, darkening and aching painfully. It  _ hurt. _

Why wouldn't anyone answer him? This wasn't supposed to happen. Was it because he had doubt in his heart? Was that enough for his Goddess to abandon him? Was it enough to feed the darkness eating away at him? It couldn't be, right? He had a will of his own--could he still not be forgiven?

“Please...if you’re still here...save me.”

The Heavens did not answer him, nor did they save him. He was left alone in the land of seething darkness, the darkness that tempted him to fall and to de-attach himself to whatever faith he had left. His purity, tainted, his saviour, unresponsive, and his mission, mutable. His weakened existence wandered through the dark woods to a colossal Shrine. 

It was built with black stone, strong and despicably taunting. A church resided deep within, one that worshipped the Lady of El. If he could make it there in one piece, he might have a chance of saving himself. For now, he would hesitantly use his corrupted powers to defend himself. Already the prospect of having that...that eye...watch him was enough to terrify him into curling up in a ball and never leave his spot. But he had to hold onto that glimmer of hope, that so-called light humans believed in as ‘hope’. He had nothing else, but a growing chaos that would threaten to pull him to someplace worse. And to top it off, he knew just how worse it could get.

* * *

  
  


At first, he couldn’t make sense of why he was alive. His eyes seemed to be looking at somewhere further than himself, staring into something unfathomable. When he fell into unconsciousness again, it felt like he was staring into the void. There was no dreaming and no sense of activity, but he felt conscious and aware. Panic. He was in a state of panic when the void stretched on for hours. There was nothing here, but he could feel his fear and insecurities rising. Clashing and revolving around the one thing that existed in such a void. His screams were swallowed up by the void, his pleas were regurgitated back to him--there was no escape to this place, it seemed. 

His breathing was getting faster and faster, ready for another scream. There was a growing pain nearing his ribcage where his kidneys were, a blistering knife of pain was making its way inside. Scream he would, but the pain only served to sink deeper underneath his skin. A stitch on a horrific scale, twisting and ripping. Once his screams died down, only then did he feel himself waking up. The light scrambling his thoughts apart as he struggled to sit up. 

A tent. A pitched up tent big enough to fit a small house. Someone came in with a bowl of water and a towel, only to see him awake and sitting up.  
     “You were found unconscious near the Bethma village,” said the man. “Secretary Allegro wants you to speak of your account, and your involvement in the destruction of Bethma.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that's a short chapter- feel free to leave a kudos, review, or anything of the sort!


	4. Blackout

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ;a; Sorry for not publishing for so long. I'm currently in the final years of my school so exams and such, and such, have been piling on my ass u wu.

He was more confused than aware of the trouble he was in. A bespectacled secretary was sitting in front of him with a knight clad in minimal armour guarding the tent. There were asking him questions about Bethma, and he answered as truthfully as he could--but all of them have met with disbelief. When a group named ‘HoD’ were mentioned, were there finally some looks of belief. Small flickers of hope were rekindled, but the questions were relentless as they were pointless. Subtract had just suffered the impact of an explosion, hallucinated some weird illusions, and had a terrifying nightmare--he was in no condition to be answering these questions. Not to mention, there was a splitting pain in his ribcage. 

Concentrating was getting hard, but he kept up the effort of at least answering the questions.

   “Sir, are you okay?” asked the secretary. “Sorry if these issues are many in number...it’s just that you were near the village.”

   And it struck him strange, “If I lit up the village, why would I be caught in the explosion?”

   “An accident...maybe? I-I guess I’m relieved in a way...that you might not be the suspect...um…”

   He sighed then and asked, “Then, can I go free?”

The secretary shook his head, “N-no, it’s not as easy as that. We’ve sent...people to search the remains of the village...um...until then…”

“Right…”

“I’m sorry…”

“Can you answer a question of mine?”

“Sure!”

“Have you heard of someone named Add?”

“I have...why?”

“Searching for him.”

“Ah...he was following the El Searching party...um, grabbed some moonstones from the nearby chapel, too...he-he should be in Velder?”

The knight from outside then came in, “May I say something?”

“Lento? Um, sure.”

“If you’re related to Add somehow, is it possible if I ask you to visit the chapel? I haven’t had time to visit there myself until now.”

“Aren’t I still a suspect?”

“You’re not going by yourself. I’m coming with you. As long as you are in Feita, your freedom is limited to us.”

 

   There were remnants of demons on the way to the chapel, and it was Subtract’s first time seeing them. Blackened skin bespeckled with grey and clad in minimal armour. They carried shields, spears and bows, all ready to attack even without a commander. Lento said he would take care of them and slashed them down with his skills, swiftly dispatching the enemies. Subtract didn’t seem to be paying attention to that. His mind scrambled, to be accurate. Who were Jayesh and Himmat? The Behemoth? Was it too subjective to be a hallucination?

Before they arrived at the chapel, there was a disturbing feel in the air. Like cold fingers pressing against the spines, unleashing emotions of dread. The chapel was half-ruined, by demonic attacks that had invaded a once holy place. Statues destroyed, glass windows shattered and platforms were in rubbles. Why does it feel like something bad will happen? Lento guided Subtract inside while searching for any more demons left over. There weren’t any. All of them, brutally killed by someone. 

“This is a mess…” observed Lento. “Something must’ve happened to the chapel while it was unguarded.”

Someone let out an anguished yell deeper into the chapel. A powerful dark aura made its way through the area, hitting against the walls like tremors unrelenting. 

“What is that?!” Lento immediately ran to the source of the aura, only to be whacked back by its force. A barrier of some sort surrounded the private place of the chapel. Even the atmosphere was visible, dark green and a pattern weaved through it. Eyes were watching back as Subtract stared. A chill ran down his spine, and he knew he was being watched. Lento was whacked into a wall and rendered unconscious. It would be wise not to go near. But he could hear a cry from inside. Indecipherable words were yelled and whoever was inside, was not having a good time.

He felt the need to run through the barrier to get inside. Someone was in trouble and whatever the reason, a massive stone was pulling down his heart to the depths of his stomach. Subtract summoned more of his drones to form a field shield and programmed in a stable element. That yell was the sound of despair and hurt, coiling around his heart like a hand reaching out. Such a familiar feeling, yet he couldn’t pinpoint such negativity. Did he once cry for help? Did he once realise something groundbreaking and it ruined his world? He didn’t want to find it out, but he ran in anyway. 

The shield barely held up, and he was almost blown away. He perceived the aura blasting around him as something to fear as if at any moment, those eyes would turn around and stare right at him. Those eyes that seem to look right through you and be able to tell you whatever dirty secrets you had. Nothing could be hidden from them--not that he had a secret other than who he was and even that was unknown to him.

The entrance to the private chapel was opened and only obscured by the barrier. Subtract just had to push through, just had to get through. Subtract could barely make out the shape of someone. Their hair unravelled before them, reaching towards the floor. The figure clad in black with a presence all too familiar communicating with him. Once he made it past the barrier, he felt dread. 

The darkness of the room had swirled before he was on the streets of a town.

He was a child, recently abandoned by his father, and he was cold. His frail body shook as the chill bit ferociously at him, welcoming him into its cold embrace. People walked by in their wintry clothes without an ounce of care for the child freezing to death. He wasn't used to apathy, the definition of lacking passion and emotion. No one would give a damn if he died there, an abandoned child unneeded by any.

The creaking wheels of a carriage came by, crushing pebbles of snow underneath. He wished he hadn't looked up at the carriage, which stopped abruptly before him. But he was shivering, on the end of his rope and losing hope of ever returning home. They took him in. They reached out their hands towards him. And he took their hand. Without even thinking of the consequences-he had been too trusting! 

Subtract shuddered terribly as if the cold returned. That's right… Those people cloaked in darkness had… took me in… and with their methods and twisted ways… changed me into their plaything… and immersed him in the void… so empty, so terrifyingly lonely…

That black hole. He stared at the figure clouded in the darkness and the Eye that stared back. He made it to the other side, and now he wished he had died on the spot. The Eye turned its attention straight towards him. 

The figure stood up, and the barrier disappeared. Subtract froze, watching the flowing silvery hair turning. Two changed eyes stared at him with a blank expression as his clothes, torn and black, wrapped around him. An unrelenting sadness seemed to tear at Subtract’s heart, rendering him unable to speak. The Eye followed the man who walked calmly towards Subtract.

“What is your name?” he asked in a slightly echoing voice.

“Ca...Subtract,” he answered. “You…?”

“...I am Ain.”

He wanted to run away. Subtract had a past contaminated by that God. Those who worshipped it called themselves zealots, the Hand of Darkness. Never again did he want to associate himself with the God of Darkness, Henir. When you felt the corruption setting on your skin, it felt like fire burning on your minuscule layers--no, it felt like ice placed for a terribly long time on your skin. The cold would cause your cells to freeze and form sharp crystals, damaging other cells nearby. Corruption should never be mistaken for warmth, for it expelled any sign of the light.

But his feet wouldn't move. He looked down to see darkness shrouding his feet. He was trapped.

Ain stopped half a metre away from Subtract. Corruption had taken over his arms and legs--that, Subtract could see. To him, this Ain reminded him of the children from his past. They were taken off the streets just like him and put through the same torturous experience, only to face the Indoctrination. Blank faces, monotone voices…those children no longer held their will. Was this person the same?

   “Your body is facing corruption, is it not?” he asked.

   “You mean the cubes being embedded in my body?” he responded with a question.

   Ain nodded. “Let me tell you something important, Subtract.” He was walking past. “Do not resist Henir. It will do you no good to struggle.”

   Subtract stayed silent. Why not struggle? In the end, Subtract didn’t want to end up like the children. He didn’t want to lose his will to Henir, to the zealots. Was this person saying that they willingly accepted Henir without being indoctrinated? Why…? 

   “Why…?” 

   Ain stopped and turned around slightly.

“Because there’s no meaning to this world. Everything will be turned into nothing in the end.”

It was too sad for him. After all, who could even believe in Ellia, or Ishmael, who didn't do anything to save them? Those children, including him, were left to suffer indiscriminately. He had known children who prayed to Ishmael to save them, cried out to the life-giving Goddess, sacrificed themselves in her name to save others...but not once were they answered. Was this why this person had given up? Why those children were so easily brainwashed? 

   He looked up at the ceiling, hearing Ain’s fading footsteps before he recklessly decided on something.

   “Ain, where is it that you’re going next?”

The question elicited silence before an answer, “I am going to rejoin the El Searching Party.”

Subtract didn’t expect an answer from the god-forsaken man, but the answer itself was surprising, to say the least. He remembered what Secretary Allegro had told him, that his brother was following the El Searching Party.

   “I want to come with you. My...brother was following them.”

Another small silence ensued. When Ain started walking, Subtract followed and the man made no objections to his decision. 

**Author's Note:**

> And that is the end of the chapter. If you enjoyed it, please leave a kudos/bookmark/comment, or anything of the like owo.


End file.
